Head-Transplants May Now be Possible

For a long time doctors have been transplanting tissues and organs from one body to another, in order to save lives. Liver, kidneys, lungs, heart, hand and face transplant have all been performed successfully already in humans. Now some researchers are suggesting we may be technically able to transplant a person's head from one body to another.

As fantastic an idea as that may sound head transplants have been conducted on animals before, but never attempted on humans. The procedure involves having both bodies in the same operating room, chilling them, and removing both heads at the same time. The surgeons then have one hour to attach the head to the new body, connect it to the circulatory system and restart the heart. What the researchers are suggesting is that we may now be able to connect the head to the body's spinal cord, which has previously been impossible. After being severed by an ultra-sharp knife, the two pieces of spinal cord can be mechanically connected, and the body's naturally healing process may be able to do the rest to give the brain control.

This idea though is just a suggestion or statement of the capabilities of modern medicine, and does not represent any intention to perform such transplants in the near future. Such a procedure could cost over $13 million dollars and the bioethical concerns are quite abundant.